Reply on `comment on our paper `Single two-level ion in an anharmonic-oscillator trap: Time evolution of the Q function and population inversion ''

We show here that the model Hamiltonian used in our paper for ion vibrating in a q-analog harmonic oscillator trap and interacting with a classical single-mode light field is indeed obtained by replacing the usual bosonic creation and annihilation operators of the harmonic trap model by their q-deformed counterparts. The approximations made in our paper amount to using for the ion-laser interaction in a q-analog harmonic oscillator trap, the operator F_{q}=exp{-(|\epsilon|^2}/2)}exp{i\epsilon A^{\dagger}}exp{i\epsilon A}, which is analogous to the corresponding operator for ion in a harmonic oscillator trap that is $F=exp{-(|\epsilon|^2 /2)}exp{i\epsilon a^{\dagger }}exp{i\epsilon a}$. In our article we do not claim to have diagonalized the operator, $F_q = exp{i \epsilon (A^{\dagger}+A)}$, for which the basis states |g,m> and |e,m> are not analytic vectors.Comment: Revtex, 4pages. To be Published in Physical Review A59, NO.4(April 99

Biomarkers and subtypes of deranged lipid metabolism in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a heterogeneous and complex disease that is imprecisely diagnosed by liver biopsy. NAFLD covers a spectrum that ranges from simple steatosis, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) with varying degrees of fibrosis, to cirrhosis, which is a major risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma. Lifestyle and eating habit changes during the last century have made NAFLD the most common liver disease linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus and dyslipidemia, with a global prevalence of 25%. NAFLD arises when the uptake of fatty acids (FA) and triglycerides (TG) from circulation and de novo lipogenesis saturate the rate of FA β-oxidation and very-low density lipoprotein (VLDL)-TG export. Deranged lipid metabolism is also associated with NAFLD progression from steatosis to NASH, and therefore, alterations in liver and serum lipidomic signatures are good indicators of the disease's development and progression. This review focuses on the importance of the classification of NAFLD patients into different subtypes, corresponding to the main alteration(s) in the major pathways that regulate FA homeostasis leading, in each case, to the initiation and progression of NASH. This concept also supports the targeted intervention as a key approach to maximize therapeutic efficacy and opens the door to the development of precise NASH treatments

Molecular Dynamics Simulations of a Pressure-induced Glass Transition

We simulate the compression of a two-component Lennard-Jones liquid at a variety of constant temperatures using a molecular dynamics algorithm in an isobaric-isothermal ensemble. The viscosity of the liquid increases with pressure, undergoing a broadened transition into a structurally arrested, amorphous state. This transition, like the more familiar one induced by cooling, is correlated with a significant increase in icosahedral ordering. In fact, the structure of the final state, as measured by an analysis of the bonding, is essentially the same in the glassy, frozen state whether produced by squeezing or by cooling under pressure. We have computed an effective hard-sphere packing fraction at the transition, defining the transition pressure or temperature by a cutoff in the diffusion constant, analogous to the traditional laboratory definition of the glass transition by an arbitrary, low cutoff in viscosity. The packing fraction at this transition point is not constant, but is consistently higher for runs compressed at higher temperature. We show that this is because the transition point defined by a constant cutoff in the diffusion constant is not the same as the point of structural arrest, at which further changes in pressure induce no further structural changes, but that the two alternate descriptions may be reconciled by using a thermally activated cutoff for the diffusion constant. This enables estimation of the characteristic activation energy for diffusion at the point of structural arrest.Comment: Latex using Revtex macro

Reply to ``Comment on `Majoron emitting neutrinoless double beta decay in the electroweak chiral gauge extensions' ''

We demonstrate that in the process of deducing the constraint on the electroweak mixing angle $\theta_{W}$ in our paper, we have indeed been working with three mass scales while implementing (331) model.Comment: Revtex, 3pages, Reply to hep-ph/9902448, Submitted to Phys. Rev.

Methionine adenosyltransferases in liver cancer.

Methionine adenosyltransferases (MATs) are essential enzymes for life as they produce S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe), the biological methyl donor required for a plethora of reactions within the cell. Mammalian systems express two genes, MAT1A and MAT2A, which encode for MATα1 and MATα2, the catalytic subunits of the MAT isoenzymes, respectively. A third gene MAT2B, encodes a regulatory subunit known as MATβ which controls the activity of MATα2. MAT1A, which is mainly expressed in hepatocytes, maintains the differentiated state of these cells, whilst MAT2A and MAT2B are expressed in extrahepatic tissues as well as non-parenchymal cells of the liver (e.g., hepatic stellate and Kupffer cells). The biosynthesis of SAMe is impaired in patients with chronic liver disease and liver cancer due to decreased expression and inactivation of MATα1. A switch from MAT1A to MAT2A/MAT2B occurs in multiple liver diseases and during liver growth and dedifferentiation, but this change in the expression pattern of MATs results in reduced hepatic SAMe level. Decades of study have utilized the Mat1a-knockout (KO) mouse that spontaneously develops non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) to elucidate a variety of mechanisms by which MAT proteins dysregulation contributes to liver carcinogenesis. An increasing volume of work indicates that MATs have SAMe-independent functions, distinct interactomes and multiple subcellular localizations. Here we aim to provide an overview of MAT biology including genes, isoenzymes and their regulation to provide the context for understanding consequences of their dysregulation. We will highlight recent breakthroughs in the field and underscore the importance of MAT's in liver tumorigenesis as well as their potential as targets for cancer therapy

Current status of hepatocellular carcinoma detection: screening strategies and novel biomarkers.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains a major cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Delayed diagnosis is a major factor responsible for the poor prognosis of HCC. Several advances have been made in the field of liver imaging with the use of novel imaging contrasts, improving current imaging techniques with contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), introduction of new technologies such as contrast liver ultrasound, and development of novel biomarkers with the goal of early detection of HCC and improving outcomes of patients with HCC. This review focuses on current surveillance strategies and development of biomarkers with the goal of early detection of HCC

The BCS theory of q-deformed nucleon pairs - qBCS

We construct a coherent state of q-deformed zero coupled nucleon pairs distributed in several single-particle orbits. Using a variational approach, the set of equations of qBCS theory, to be solved self consistently for occupation probabilities, gap parameter Delta, and the chemical potential lambda, is obtained. Results for valence nucleons in nuclear degenerate sdg major shell show that the strongly coupled zero angular momentum nucleon pairs can be substituted by weakly coupled q-deformed zero angular momentum nucleon pairs. A study of Sn isotopes reveals a well defined universe of (G, q) values, for which qBCS converges. While the qBCS and BCS show similar results for Gap parameter Delta in Sn isotopes, the ground state energies are lower in qBCS. The pairing correlations in N nucleon system, increase with increasing q (for q real).Comment: 8 pages, REVTEX, 3 eps figure